https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0b7iiMG2Hr8
I got you some commercials for Christmas. Unwrap and enjoy.
(Ronco is still around.)
Archive for December, 2014
Christmas Commercials, 1978: Ronco’s Record Vacuum and Mr. Microphone
Published December 16, 2014 Christmas , Commercials , Obsolete Tech 1 CommentChristmas Morning, 1977: Batman’s Wayne Foundation, Star Hawk, and Super Joe Rocket Command Center
Published December 15, 2014 Batman , Christmas , Christmas Morning , Mego , Spider-Man , Super Joe Leave a Comment
Dusty Abell—holy shirtless wonder, Batman!—sent in this beauty last week. He says:
Best guess would be December 25, 1977. Star Wars [toys] had yet to hit, otherwise I’m sure we’d be seeing the Falcon and Star Wars figures in the shot! Ideal’s Star Team came out immediately following the release of Star Wars and filled the gap until those toys hit the following year.
Toys seen include Mego’s Batman’s Wayne Foundation, The Amazing Spider-Car, Batcopter, and Batman and Spidey figures; Ideal’s Star Hawk and Zem 21 (from the S.T.A.R. Team line); Hasbro’s Super Joe Commander and the Super Joe Rocket Command Center (see both here); and the Tomland Star Raiders figure Yog (between Batman and Spidey).
Try not to be too envious of Dusty’s righteous haul, people. He grew up to be a talented artist who focuses on geek pop culture of the ’70s and ’80s—so he’s giving back to the community! See a couple of my favorite works below (click to enlarge), and then check out lots more at his DeviantArt gallery.
Christmas Morning, 1980: Star Wars, Star Snoopy, and Mr. Mouth
Published December 12, 2014 Board Games/Tabletop Games , Christmas , Christmas Morning , Colorforms , Fisher-Price , Kenner Toys , Star Wars (Original Trilogy) 1 Comment
That’s Darth Vader’s Star Destroyer Playset under the Land of the Jawas Playset. Among the figures you can see the Hoth Stormtrooper, my third favorite ESB figure after the AT-AT Driver and Hoth Han. Hoth Luke is also there.
Two items I’d forgotten about are Star Snoopy Colorforms (1979) and Tomy’s Mr. Mouth (1976).
There were a couple of different versions of Mr. Mouth, one featuring a green frog as the centerpiece, the other featuring a dopey yellow guy. The dopey yellow guy is the one I remember, but I could only find a commercial for the frog version. The yellow figure was later repurposed as a Pac-Man bank, seen below via the 1982 Tomy catalog. I got Pocket Pac-Man as a stocking stuffer in ’81 or ’82, but I never did get Mr. Mouth.
I also had the Fisher-Price Play Family Fun Jet, seen at the far left of the original photo.
(Christmas morning photo via the Rebel Scum forums)
Horrific Spider-Man Poster, 1973
Published December 11, 2014 Comic Books , Make Mine Marvel 2 Comments
I interrupt my holiday programming to bring you the worst Spider-Man poster anybody has ever seen. It was given away during an early stamp book promotion—a year before the Value Stamps were introduced in 1974. Extremely rare, according to seller Marvel Museum, and also extremely hideous.
Marvel Comics Trade Ad, 1980: ‘More Popular Than Santa?’
Published December 11, 2014 Ads , Christmas , Comic Books , Make Mine Marvel 2 Comments
“Marvel Comics yearly reach an incredible 77% of all kids in the United States between 6 and 17.” I have to believe there’s some padding going on, but still, that’s a big number, and I don’t doubt it. Bringing a comic book to school would buy you a class full of friends for a day.
Christmas Morning Home Video, 1980: Hot Wheels Wipeout and Star Wars Toys
Published December 10, 2014 Christmas , Christmas Morning , Home Video , Hot Wheels , Kenner Toys , Star Wars (Original Trilogy) 3 Commentshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emh6OR8fBPU
The Kenner Star Wars/The Empire Strikes Back stuff starts at 2:43. Brother and sister demo the Wipeout set at 4:04.
The mother of all Christmas morning Star Wars videos is here.
Christmas Morning, 1977: Magnavox Odyssey 2000
Published December 9, 2014 Christmas , Christmas Morning , Electronic Handhelds , Home Consoles , Video Games 4 Comments
The Odyssey 2000 (1977) was the 7th iteration of the original Odyssey, the very first home video game console, designed by Ralph H. Baer. As many of you have heard, Baer passed away on December 5th. Pong, though much more popular, was essentially a knock-off of the Odyssey’s Tennis game, and so the history of home consoles begins with Baer, not Bushnell.
The owl calculator is The Little Professor, a “learning aid” that presents mathematical problems for the user to solve. There’s an emulator, if you want to give it a go.
Christmas Morning, 1975 and 1976: Pong
Published December 9, 2014 '70s Decor/Design/Fashion , Atari , Christmas , Christmas Morning , Home Consoles , Video Games 2 Comments
The first photo comes from DudesLife and shows the brothers playing the first commercial home version of Pong, the Sears-exclusive “Tele-Games” Pong.
In the second photo, via Michael Schroeder, dad and son play what looks like Atari’s C-100 Pong, released in 1976. (Pat Schroeder, seen in the poster on the wall, was the first woman from Colorado to be elected to Congress.)
The shot below (source unknown) shows the Super Pong (C-140) box on a Christmas morning in ’76 or ’77. Super Pong featured four games, while the other versions played only one. Compare all the versions at Pong Story.
MicroKids #1 (December, 1983): ‘Rating the New Games for Christmas’
Published December 9, 2014 Christmas , Home Consoles , Magazines/Zines , Video Games Leave a Comment
I know, I know. Your PS4 offers not games but “immersive experiences” that blur the boundary between fantasy and reality, creator and creation. I think that’s really cute! Now, how many screens can you clear on BurgerTime with three chefs, three shakes of pepper, and no way to save your progress?
(Read the whole issue at the Internet Archive.)
Christmas Morning, 1982: AT-AT and Big Trak
Published December 8, 2014 Christmas , Christmas Morning , Kenner Toys , Star Wars (Original Trilogy) 1 Comment
Daniel Baker, you are one lucky kid. I arranged the shots in what I think is consecutive order. First, we see the massive AT-AT box unwrapped. Second, dad works diligently to assemble AT-AT while kids opens the Big Trak. Third, kid puts finishing touches on the Walker as assorted Star Wars figures look on. Fourth, the Big Trak (the separately sold Transporter is in the foreground) goes for a pre-programmed spin. Fifth, kid sits on mom’s lap, admiring his toy domain, exhausted by happiness.
More Christmas morning AT-ATs here.
2 Warps to Neptune 